Navigating Police Services In Hillsboro During Coronovirus

Press release from the City of Hillsboro:

March 31, 2020

Things certainly feel very different around Hillsboro as the community has combined with the rest of the state in practicing social distancing. One thing that hasn’t changed though is the continuation of full police department services being delivered 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Our department has a dedicated staff which is working with both determination to serve and creativity in the way we go about it.

An important measure of a police department’s readiness is the ability to continue to deliver normal services in the midst of a major incident. That ideal is admittedly based on incidents that last over the course of several hours rather than weeks. However, the same strategies can help navigate both. They involve a high level of coordination in distributing resources, a trust in the individual staff member’s skill, and a prioritization of tasks to be accomplished.

In distributing resources, the department is not unique in this current state of affairs in finding ways to keep staff less vulnerable to exposure to the COVID-19 virus. Like many other organizations, we have maximized our efficiency through technology, and in cooperation with the other elements of the criminal justice system, developed protocols to keep the community safe. We continue to benefit from the professionalism of our staff, who despite the temporary way of conducting business, are still able to protect while serving. Officers have made emergency deliveries, continue to be the safety net for those with mental illness, and have been on the frontline of helping the homeless stay in contact with services among many other things.

One particular concern is the opportunity these unique circumstances present for financial crimes and fraud. Community members should continue to engage in the practices that have always protected them from victimization. Treat personal information securely, avoid unsolicited financial schemes and products, and understand that most trusted financial institutions do not request confidential information over the phone or through texts.

Your police department is taking aggressive steps to keep services at levels that will allow us to continue to prioritize the protection of life, property, and the public peace. We do this while adapting our mission to also support the ongoing efforts of public health officials and medical professionals in these extraordinary times. We are proud partners with them as they work tirelessly to protect the same people we have sworn to serve.

This press release was produced by the City of Hillsboro. The views expressed here are the author’s own.